Minnesota couple avoids jail time after Miles City marijuana bust

BILLINGS- A Minnesota couple avoided federal prison Thursday after they were arrested with about a 1,000 pounds of marijuana in Miles City in 2017.

Steven Thomas Robinson, 59, and his wife, Vicki Lynn Robinson, 60, of Milaca, Minn., were sentenced to one day of time served and five years of supervised release for the Aug. 30, 2017, incident, according to U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme.

They each had pleaded guilty in November to possession with intent to distribute marijuana.

Steven Robinson faced a maximum of about four years in prison, while Vicki Robinson faced a maximum of just over three years.

U.S. District Judge Susan Watters noted Steven Robinson’s serious health problems and the couple’s cooperation with law enforcement as factors in the sentencing, according to Alme.

The pair was arrested after the Montana Highway Patrol’s Eastern Montana Interdiction Task Force received a tip from Minnesota authorities that an RV was transporting large quantities of marijuana from California to Minnesota.

Troopers found the RV in a Miles City parking lot. After the Robinsons agreed to a search, they found 960 pounds of marijuana. Steven Robinson said he was paid $20,000 for the transport and had delivered before, according to Alme.